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Here’s What Trigger Warnings Are – And What They’re Not

Are trigger warnings part of a conspiracy to limit free speech? Not at all – but that’s what you might believe if you’ve been tuning into the debates on trigger warnings.

Trigger warnings, also called content warnings, can help people who have experienced trauma, but some people are against them.

No matter which side you’re on in this debate, this illustration can help you understand more about what trigger warnings really mean – and what it means for our society if we’re unwilling to provide them.

Click for the Transcript

Panel 1

(Exterior shot of the University of Chicago admissions building)

Text: A lot of people are terrified of trigger warnings.

Building: No trigger warnings allowed!

Panel 2

(Newspaper headlines like “Trigger Warnings, Colleges, and the Swaddled Generation – The Washington Post,” “In College and Hiding From Scary Ideas – The New York Times,” “How Trigger Warnings Are Hurting Mental Health On Campus – The Atlantic”)

Text: A quick Google search would make you think they’re some kind of Fahrenheit 451 conspiracy.

Panel 3

(A red X through the image of the previous panel)

Text: But that’s not really what trigger warnings are.

Panel 4

(A hospital exterior)

Text: Let me give you a scenario.

Panel 5

(I sit in a psych ward hallway)

Text: In junior year of college, I was hospitalized for suicidal ideation.

Panel 6

(Panicked, I curl into myself, with thoughts in the background: Will they let me leave? What happens if I tell them I’m suicidal? When can I call my parents?)

Text: It was a very scary place.

Panel 7

(Interior shot of a classroom)

Text: One week later, one of my classes decided to show a video.

Panel 8

(A video on old TV of people being forced into the hospital)

Text: It was on the history of forced sterilization in mental hospitals.

Panel 9

(Close-up of my stressed-out face)

Text: I was not prepared.

Panel 10

(I sit in my chair with thought bubbles: a woman staring at me, an identification bracelet, a knife, an open window)

Text: All of my memories suddenly pooled into my brain.

Panel 11

(I cry at my desk)

Text: I wanted to leave, but I didn’t want to be a bad student.

Panel 12

(The class stares at me, confused and uncomfortable, while I cry profusely)

Text: So I just sat there.

Panel 13

(A clock rewinds)

Text: Now, this situation could have been avoided.

Panel 14

(The professor is talking to students. I raise my hand.)

Text: All that needed to happen is…

Professor: Class, we are about to watch a video about forced sterilization in psych wards.

Me: I’m not sure I’m emotionally able to deal with this video at the moment, but I’m going to try. If it does overwhelm me, is it okay if I step out?

Panel 15

(The professor is now talking to me)

Professor: Yes, absolutely. I wouldn’t want to force you to relive a traumatic situation.

Me: Thanks, dude.

Text: (in red) CRISIS AVERTED.

Panel 16

(A sexual assault survivor and a war veteran march at the front of a political protest.)

Text: I’m not the only person who has ever experienced trauma.

Panel 17

Text: But we live in a culture that thinks emotions are feminine and weak…

Group of Boys: (surrounding one crying boy) Aw, he’s crying like a little girl!

Panel 18

(Police officers patrol a street with high-tech military equipment)

Text: That thrives on aggression and abuse…

Panel 19

(A mass of people standing for the pledge of allegiance)

Text: And that refuses to admit that the way it operates hurts people.

Panel 20

(Again, I sit crying in class, trying not to look at anyone)

Text: So when something bad happens, you suck it up.

Me: I’m fine.

Panel 21

(Close-up of a trigger warning on my syllabus)

Text: And that’s what trigger warnings challenge.

Me: Wait. No. I’m not fine.

Panel 22

(I head out of the room while doing breathing exercises)

Text: They give us the right to our trauma and control over our healing.

Me: 1, 2, 3, 4… 1, 2, 3, 4…

Panel 24

(I sit on the staircase outside of the classroom)

Text: They let us know that what happened was real.

Panel 25

(I start writing on a piece of paper)

Text: And that we have every right to be pissed about it.

Panel 26

(Close-up of the impromptu protest sign I made on the steps and am now holding, which says “Are psych wards to help us or keep us hidden? Let’s restructure!”)

M. Slade is a Contributing Comic Artist for Everyday Feminism. He is New York-based cartoonist and illustrator. Aside from creating artwork for EF, he also has a weekly webcomic about his experiences realizing he’s a trans man: Adventures In Genderland. M.Slade also works as Co-Head Editor for the Independent Publishing Section of ComicsVerse.com, and you can find his articles here. In his spare time, he can be found nerding out about video games and cartoons, or crying while petting his cat. You can check out his website here or his Tumblr here. Check out his EF comics here.